Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 206 — page 3: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

. + ee ees - One Ry lawn, a smile on the face, the limbs decently | as in sleep, and Colonel, the Marquis | was laboring under strong. but suppressed ‘compos of Hauteville, cried out: ‘So dies a traitor to France!” Then, turning on young Albert with a sneer, he continued: **You can save yourself the trouble of resig- nation. The Guard is to be disbanded to-mor- row. We only saved them to do this little busi- ness for us, that no one might say Ney was shot by Royalists. Good-day!” Then he rode away, while the crowd burst into the inclosure between the sentries, unim- eded by the soldiers, as soon as the colonel’s back was turned, and began to weepand lament over the body, while they scattered flowers over the coffin. As for Albert Delmont, he seemed to be un- able to do anything but attend to his mechani- cal duties. He led his men back to the barracks from which they had come, and entered his own quarters, where he found on the table a printed order disbanding the organization “‘ known as the Old Guard of the Usurper, the men to be paid up to the date of the usurper’s landing at Cannes only.” And disbanded they were, scattered to the four winds of heaven, as was fitting. The soldiers that had fought under the eagles of Napoleon were too proud to march under the dunghill cock of the Bourbons. They would sooner scatter to the hamlets whence they had come in 1789, with nothing left of their years of glory but a memory. But that very afternoon, before the sun had set, Albert Delmont took his way through the back slums of the Faubourg St. Antoine, through narrow, ill-smelling streets, where they had hung nobles from lanterns, twenty years before, and stopped at last at a corner where was written: ‘Ree DES Prpots.” Up this dingy, ill-smelling lane he passed to No. 78, where ‘M knocked at the door, which was opened to him by a tall, savage-looking man with one eye, who scowled and demanded: ** Well, popinjay officer, what is it? I am not in the service now. What is it?” “The violet may bloom again,” returned Al- bert, quietly, “if you will give me the mar- shal’s legacy.” CHAPTER Ii. THE MARSHAL’S LEGACY. THE one-eyed man started violently and -‘ared at Albert, who returned the compliment with interest. The stranger had much the aspect of a wild beast about him. In a day of close-shaven faces, when the mus- tache was confined to caValry soldiers and veterans of the Old Guard, this man wore a full beard of enormous size, an appendage only seen among sappers or Cossacks, His hair was thick and curly, but wild and untrimmed, and his fierce, dark eye had a wolfish glare in it, while his face was as dark as an Indian’s, His dress was only shirt and trowsers, while his feet—very large ones—were bare, as were his big, muscular arms, He eyed Albert from head to foot, and at last owled out: ‘‘Itis not possible he trusted a boy like you. Why, you have never seen a campaign.” Albert smiled tranquilly and repeated the password taught him by the marshal, when the other suddenly threw open the door, ey: ‘‘Come in, come in. No need of telling it all to the street.” Albert entered a dark passage, when the man closed the door, and said gram: ‘“*Go on. There’s a door at the end.” They went on to a door, which opened into a small room looking out on a tiny paved court, where the bearded man) pointed to a chair, observing: | ‘Sit there. I know the countersign; but I must be excused for suspicions, for the police are be a forme. Whatis your name, may I ask’ ‘‘Tell me yours first,” retorted the young officer. ‘If you were ever a soldier, you must know that officers do not submit to be ques- tioned by strangers,” The otber nodded. “Right, lieutenant. My name is Jean Martin, of Rochefort.” ‘And [am Lieutenant Delmont, of the 17th Grenadiers of the y A scow!] crossed the other’s face. ‘** You are?” js 6 +s, Now what bev? you to say to the ead marshal’s message ‘The dead marsha?” si Yes.” ‘Is he dead then?’ ‘*Certainly. Isaw him shot.” The other glared wolfishly at him. ‘* Perhaps you helped shoot him, I saw your name in command of the firing squad, Monsieur Delmont.” ee $$ The young man saw that the one-eyed man excitement, and he brought round his sword- hilt to the front, ere he answered slowly: ‘*The marshal himself gave the order to aim and fire, but I directed the pieces to be loaded. 1 was ordered to do it, and, as a soldier, 1 could not disobey.” The other a his solitary eye glaring at him till he had finished. Then Jean Martin drew a deep breath, and observed huskily: ‘* You are right. him, I could; but there was no time. fated.” He relapsed into a gloomy silence, broken by Delmont asking: ‘* Well, the marshal’s message calls for you to give me something. What is it?” Jean nodded. ‘‘ All right. Lam coming to that. you get the password?” ‘* How could I get it? The marshal gave it to me, of course.” * When?” ‘‘ Just before he died. He asked me if I loved the emperor—”’ ‘* He did!” Martin’s solitary eye glowed like a coal. ** Well?” **T told him yes.” “That was good, Well.” ‘* He asked me if I would dare try to res—” ‘* Hush!” One Eye leaped up and looked alarmed. He stole to the door, looked down the passage as if fearful some one would bear; then came back and peered out of the window. Finally he came to Delmont and whispered: ‘** Pardon, my officer, but we must not say it aloud. He asked youif you would dare try a sail on the ocean across the line. Is it not so? You know he is there.” Delmont nodded. ‘He did. I told him yes, and he gave me the word. Is that enough?’ Martin’s manner changed to one of deep re- spect, as he said; ‘*{t ask pardon, monsieur.. I should. have known Ae would not make a mistake. You are oung; but he saw something in you I did not. cuse me, lieutenant, but you are educated—a graduate of the Polytechnique?” ‘No, of St. Cyr. Had the emperor been here I should have been in the engineers.” Martin’s face brightened. ‘*L_ knew he would not make a mistake—but pardon me—these engineers—do they not make maps? are they not savans? We had them in Egypt, and we used to say ‘Form square, savans and donkeys in the center.’ You know they rode on the donkeys.; They were not soldiers. Are you a savan, monsieur?’ Delmont smiled. ‘*] have no such claims. I was educated for a soldier, and, with a little trouble, L might make a sailor.” ‘‘A sailor?’ echoed Martin. ‘‘But there I must differ from monsieur. I am a sailor my- self—at least I was until that foolish affair of Trafalgar. Iwas with the emperor in Egypt, after Brueys got us cut to pieces at Aboukir. The general made us join the army and we thrashed the Bedouins finely. But I know it takes years to make a sailor.” ‘* Nevertheless,” said Delmont smiling, ‘‘ I am sure I can do part of a sailor’s duty already. [can use instruments and take latitudes and longitudes—an important thing for a sailor to know, as I’ve heart.” Martin jumped up and clapped his hands joy- fully, crying: “I might have known he knew his business. It was just such a man we needed, we old sea- dogs. It is settled. Monsieur will take the command, and we shall be happy to teach him all we know and obey his orders, if he will tell us how to get to the place we know of.” ‘* But that is what [ donot know.” ‘* Monsieur?” Martin’s face lowered again. ‘I know where the place is, and how to get there if I had a ship; but how to get the ship.is the question, Martin. That is why I wish to see the marshal’s legacy.” Martin looked relieved, ‘‘Is that all? That is nothing, I will bring it to monsieur at once.” : He went to the wall, opened a cupboard, and brought forth a small package which he banded to Delmont, ‘It is there, monsieur. I don’t quite under- stand it myself, being no scholar; but the marshal knew his me be able to see what it means better than me. Then Delmont opened with a good deal of curiosity the package which had come to him we singular a way. ‘ t th was com do ra, one of them a map, and the first cotatana these words which he read aloud: ‘The map herewith annexed shows the ) on which sixteen oe gp and a n r of caravela were sunk by their captains {n order to avold capture by the buccaneers. The island near If man could have saved It was How did e, the Cannoneer. and you will perhaps . 3 which they lie buried, is subject to extraordinary rises and fallings at uncertain intervals, and on two occasions the wrecks have been exposed to view for several weeks, but have never been reached on ac- count of the absence of scientific men. ‘The next rise ought to occur in the winter of 1815- 16; and an expedition there will not fail to secure good results, as the estimated treasure, in gold alone, reaches a hundred million frances. The cele- brated Mendoza diamond, said to be er than the Pitt or Regent, is in one of the ships t carried the admiral. Itis part of the present sent by the viceroy of Mexico to Philip III. of Spain, to stave off an impeachment. The poor viceroy, in losing the fleet, lost his head too, The island is so uncertain in its periods of rising that most navigators decry its existence, but the sea in its vicinity is she marked dangerous, and avoided by careful mari- neers. It is part of the great Bahama Bank, and the spot was located at the time by the observa- tions of the buccaneers. “It was since rediscovered by accident, by Captain Philippe de Merincourt in the B boo 1799, during. the American dispute, but the death of the captain rendered his further search impossible.’ He was able to carry away, from a single galleon, two or three hundred ingots of gold only, when a hurricane drove bim off and he was killed in action with the British ship Penelope soon after. papers came into my hands through my wife, who was the cap- tain’s sister, and she has never ceased since teasing mo to Cirn sailor. If ever this fine structure of ours should topple, I may, but at present the , makes me rich enough. MICHEL Nery. “ August, 1807." “Eight years ago,” mused Albert,” and he foresaw then the fall of the empire.” Martin grunted. ‘““ Ay, ay, it was a fine time while it lasted; but France had to pay for itin the end. Well, my lieutenant?’ ‘Well, Martin?’ “Can you make it out?” ‘* What?” * What it all means?” “Why certainly. Itseems the marshal has the secret of a sunken treasure in the sea, and has never used it.” ‘* Ay, ay, but where?’ ‘‘Ah, that 1 don’t know. It is not in the paper; it may be in the chart.” He looked carefully over the chart, which in- dicated part of the Bahama Bank; ‘but the latitude and longitude marks were so old and faded it was impossible to tell whether the spot marked with a cross was in 24 or 25 north lati- tude, while the longitude, besides being faint, was marked in a way to show it was taken from some otber point than Paris. Albert turned it round in vain to find some definite clew, when it occurred to him to look at the back, where he found the words: “* Two hundred and fifty-seven nautical miles north- west of Punta Mulas, ard eighty west from Little Emma, sighted a blasted palm trée, due south. Under that the cove of nbaeig is- land. The wrecks lie in shallow water, if this tree is visible, one mile and a half east at the edge of the coral reef. They have not been broken up yet by any storms as they are all under water, Diving is necessary to reach them.” Then he looked up at Martin. ‘*T could find it from those directions. is that all? How are we to get there?” Martin shrugged his shoulders, ‘* Let mousieur look further. He never made mistakes, There are other papers.” Then Albert turned to the other papers, all of which were recent in date, one of them written since the battle of Waterloo. One of them was an order to “ Bissot, Yvart et Compagnie,” of Havre, to furnish Monsieur (name left blanck) with the lugger Creole or the armed chasse maree Damede Secours, as he should elect, with a full set of diving apparatus and the sum of twenty-five thousand francs in money, the same “to be charged to the account of what the firm will owe my estate if 1 die, as I apprehend, suddenly.” This was signed by the marshal, escription of the But Another contained a full d Island of St. Helena with a map of the sound- ings round it, and detailed accounts of the easiest place for a secret landing. It concluded: ‘The man to whom I intrust this has Pramaised to do his utmost to rescue the emperor. If he finds we cannot succeed on the amount of money that he collects from Bissot, Yvart et Cie., then I authorize him to sail for the Lost Islands, but not tillthen. If he succeed in ng the emperor and landing - gee a he make over to his peueny e treasures to p a fresh expedition to conn, f the France. If, on the other em r die in Sahat Me arc no further se LI s; e treasure. own family are or already, and abed it not. t hin sep Se But if he misuse it or desert the emperor, I not cease to haunt him and make his life Micue. Ney.” Martin nodded sagaciously. “And if he says it he'll do it, lieutenant. Well, what shall we do? You are the chief of our league.” ‘What league?” “The league of liberation. You think I am alone, Not a bit of it.” ‘How many are there?” Ot ust ‘‘ Ah, that’s hard to tell,” “Why?” ) 7 ‘ 7 4. | com G O (oO) @) . Ss GoM